Significantly more passengers: 9-euro ticket inspires local transport

More passengers and longer routes - the Federal Statistical Office testifies to the massive effect of the 9-euro ticket.

Significantly more passengers: 9-euro ticket inspires local transport

More passengers and longer routes - the Federal Statistical Office testifies to the massive effect of the 9-euro ticket. Public transport recorded a significant increase compared to the previous year. In the case of light rail, however, the influence is less than in the railways.

The 9-euro ticket boosted passenger numbers in local public transport in the second quarter. From April to June, 46 percent more passengers traveled by rail, including S-Bahn, than in the first quarter of 2022, according to a preliminary special evaluation by the Federal Statistical Office. Compared to the same quarter of the previous year, there was even an increase of 74 percent.

"In addition to the easing of the corona measures, the 9-euro ticket that has been valid since June should also have contributed to the increases," it said. The latter was decided as part of the federal government's relief package for the months of June, July and August in order to relieve consumers in the face of high inflation.

The average distance traveled by passengers in local rail transport in the spring was 25 kilometers - that was more than in the previous quarter at 22 kilometers and in the same quarter of the previous year at 21 kilometers. "The further distances are likely to be due to the 9-euro ticket, the Corona measures had a comparatively small impact on this in the past," according to the statisticians.

The transport performance in passenger kilometers, which measures the kilometers traveled by all passengers together, increased significantly. In local rail transport, there was an increase of 68 percent compared to the previous quarter and 113 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year. 21 percent more passengers traveled on trams and light rail vehicles (including elevated, underground and suspension railways) than in the previous quarter and 48 percent more than in the same quarter of the previous year. "The growth was lower than in local rail transport," it said.

The average travel distances remained almost unchanged at around four kilometers. The data from transport companies that use automated passenger counting systems and whose data were already “quality-checked” at the time of the analysis were evaluated for the statistics, as the Federal Office emphasized.